Such a gas mask and breathing equipment has become known from EP-A-164,946. In this prior-art gas mask and breathing equipment, the respirator is directly connected to both the blower unit and the filter, wherein the blower unit and the filter are aligned, in terms of flow, in an axial direction to one another. The fan part of the blower unit, which supports the delivery of respiration gas during inspiration, is arranged, in terms of flow, behind the filter as a respiration gas-generating fan wheel, but it may also be installed in front of the filter in terms of flow, in which case the fan part presses the respiration gas through the filter and into the respiration gas inlet of the respirator. In both cases, the energy supply for the fan part is led out of the blower unit via electrical lines, and is further led to a separate power supply unit (battery, control unit for controlling the blower power, and monitoring of the battery functions), which is attached as a separate component, e.g., to the belt of the user of the gas mask and breathing equipment. To monitor the blower unit for proper function, a pressure sensor is provided, which switches the blower unit on and off under defined circumstances via a switch. Both the sensor and the switch are attached in an appropriate area within the mask body, and their electrical connection to the power supply unit is established via separate cables.
It is disadvantageous in the prior-art arrangement that each of the control components necessary for monitoring the blower unit is connected separately to both the blower unit and to the power supply unit, and that after replacement of filters with different respiration gas resistances, the monitoring elements (pressure sensor and switch) cannot be adapted to the new conditions, e.g., flow resistance and output.